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COVID-19 Outbreak Closes Slaughterhouse As 1,300 Workers Test Positive

by Alix Coe | June 22, 2020

A slaughterhouse in Germany has temporarily shut down after more than 1,300 workers tested positive for COVID-19.

The slaughterhouse outbreak is the biggest incident of coronavirus in the country since lockdown restrictions were eased last month.

Several thousand people work at the Tönnies Group facility in the city of Gütersloh, with many still awaiting test results. All workers and anyone they have been in close contact with have been advised to self-isolate.

“Our plants have not been built for a pandemic,” said Dr Gereon Schulze Althoff, director of quality management and veterinary services at Tönnies Group.

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COVID-19 Outbreak

Schulze Althoff appeared to blame the outbreak on a high number of foreign employees having visited their home countries over the last few weeks.

“We Can Only Say Sorry”

“We can only say sorry to those affected,” said Andre Vielstaedte, press officer at Tönnies Group.

“We will do everything to get the virus out of the processing plant, and that we are ready to work thereafter.”

There are currently 192,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Germany, with at least 8,921 deaths.

Do you think slaughterhouses should be doing more to protect their employees? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

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